


Five times people mistakenly thought Emma and Regina were in a relationship and one time they were right

by queenssaviour



Series: Swan Queen Week (Summer 2015) [3]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/F, Humor, I hate romantic comedies but I love writing them, Mistaken For A Couple, Mistaken for Being in a Relationship, Past Swanfire and Dragon Queen mentioned, Romantic Comedy, Sea Devil subtext possibly, Smut, Swan Queen Week, Swan Queen Week Summer 2015, i'm trash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-15
Updated: 2015-08-12
Packaged: 2018-04-09 13:30:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,858
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4350617
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/queenssaviour/pseuds/queenssaviour
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sure, Emma looked like an excited puppy around her sometimes, and she supported her and believed in her like no one else did. But the Savior looked at everyone that way, didn't she? Emma might as well have told the clock tower of Storybrooke that she always knew when it was lying. It didn't mean Emma would reciprocate the feelings Regina may or may not have had.<br/> <br/>Written for Swan Queen Week, Day Four: Mistaken For a Couple. (Also, implied Day Six: An Act of True Love.)</p><p>Companion piece to "Drinking Buddies and Bedfellows" (Day One).</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. the heart of the truest theorist

**Author's Note:**

> I don't own OUAT.
> 
> Thanks to my beta, Ari! She's amazing.

The first person who told Regina that she and Emma looked like a couple was their son.

At the time, Henry wasn't aware that Regina was his mother, but that didn't seem to keep him from creating theories including her and his other mother. This time his theories didn't revolve around fairytale characters and far off lands, but Henry suspected his birth mother and Regina had a history that went deeper than just friendship.

It started innocently enough, Regina taking Henry to the town for an ice cream and conversing about his life in New York. As they walked around a pond, Henry mentioned a boyfriend of Emma's that had proposed to her. Regina's first reaction was to make sure that Henry was comfortable with the situation, her second was the fear that Emma having a fiancé in New York was another reason for her to go back and take Henry with her, and her third reaction… She couldn't – or didn't want to – put it into words, but it was too similar to the feeling she had when saw Emma around that lovesick pirate.

She shrugged the feeling off quickly enough. "I think one day you'll have more family than you know what to do with," she said, unable to hold back a comment that meant so much more than Henry knew. She really hoped it was true, too, because she couldn't live in a world where Henry didn't remember her. Even him hating her felt like a better option now.

"You think so?" he asked, completely oblivious to the significance of the sentence.

"I really do," she answered and was happy to see Henry smiling back at her.

"So, Mayor Mills, can I ask you something?" Henry asked uncertainly.

The formal title broke Regina's heart every time Henry used it. How could she ever get used to the most important person in her life not knowing her? She was his mother. She just wanted to talk to her son who knew her.

"Of course, Henry. I don't mind. You can ask me anything," she replied with the calmest expression she could manage. She wanted Henry to be able to confide in her. She wanted to be as much of his mother as she could considering the current circumstances.

"Okay, so, were you and my mom ever together?"

Regina stayed silent for a moment. The wording of the question was odd. She had spent many moments with Emma, many of them together with Henry, too, but she could hardly tell him that.

"I'm sorry, I'm not sure what you mean."

"Like, dating. Romantic stuff. I feel like there's something between you guys and Mom won't tell me what it is. She just said something about a shared history and nothing I should worry about. She's so mysterious about everything, and no one seems to tell me the truth. The way you communicate even without words, I just kinda thought…"

She was speechless. Maybe Henry had such a far-fetched interpretation of the situation because he had to make sense of it somehow. She knew for a fact that he had a very vivid imagination. Although, now that she thought about it, he had been right the last time he had a theory.

"No, Henry, I've never dated your mother."

Well, that was a sentence she had never thought she would say.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to be rude or upset you, Mayor Mills. I just feel… She never even looked at Walsh that way she looked at you yesterday when you were at Mary Margaret's. And she introduced you to me straight away, when it took her weeks to introduce me to Walsh. I'm sorry, I'll let it be. I just don't know what to think. I can't seem to get a straight answer out of my mom about anything anymore." Henry let out a weak slightly amused chuckle.

She didn't know whether to laugh or cry. She wasn't sure if Henry was being extremely observant or just had his mind set on a hunch he had again.

Sure, she might've looked at Emma like she was the only person who made sense to her and didn't drive her up the wall, but that didn't have to _mean_ anything. She could very well ignore feelings she may or may not have had in increasing amounts ever since Emma had climbed out of that well and a wave of relief had washed over her when seeing the blonde alive. Giving Emma and Henry new good memories and not being annoyed by the blonde's presence when she was fed up with everyone else – apart from their shared son – didn't have to mean absolutely anything.

Besides, had she had feelings for Emma, that wouldn't have mattered anyway since Emma obviously didn't feel that way about her. Sure, Emma looked like an excited puppy around her sometimes, and she supported her and believed in her like no one else did. But the Savior looked at everyone that way, didn't she? Emma might as well have told the clock tower of Storybrooke that she always knew when it was lying. It didn't mean Emma would reciprocate the feelings Regina may or may not have had.

"Mayor Mills?" Henry's voice pulled her from her thoughts.

"Yes, sorry, did you say something, dear?"

"Nah, I was just thanking you again for the ice cream," Henry said and gave her a small smile.

"You're welcome, dear, " she replied and returned the smile. She supposed their conversation about Emma's love life was over, so she decided to change the topic. "So, Emma told me you like comic books."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know if you liked it! I'll post more soon. (This time I actually mean it.)


	2. pining and denying

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to Ari again for helping me out so much with all these chapters x
> 
> (I know everyone doesn't like Neal, but he ships SQ here if that makes you feel any better. If not, just skip this chapter.)

The first person who told Emma there had to be something romantic going on between her and Regina was Neal.  
  
The conversation took place in the woods after Neal had been found. They talked about the missing year, she telling him about New York and confessing what a fiasco her relationship with Walsh ended up being, and him listening to her every word. They laughed about how crazy their lives were with with flying monkey boyfriends and minions of Peter Pan granddads. They were on the same page until Neal brought up a question she hadn't been expecting.  
  
"I care about you, Emma. I just want you to be happy. Even if it isn't with me…"  
  
"We were happy, once," she replied with a smile. Neal saying that meant a lot to her. She was glad they were on such good terms again.  
  
"We never found Tallahassee... Speaking of happy, I guess Regina really managed to give you and Henry happy memories and a good life, huh?"  
  
"Yeah," she replied, noticing Neal had more to say.  
  
"I just have to ask… after  seeing you guys say goodbye at the town line… What's the deal with you and Regina?" Neal had his smug face on, which made her confused.  
  
"What do you mean what's going on?"  
  
"You were a couple, right?" Neal dropped casually as they kept walking further into the woods. "Stupid of me and Hook to keep fighting over you when your heart was obviously somewhere else."  
  
She tripped on her own foot right then, which was an accomplishment even for her. Regina and her? That was ridiculous. Or not _that_ ridiculous. She may have entertained the idea of the other woman between her sheets when she had first arrived in Storybrooke, and there had been… something there behind all the quarreling. Later, Regina had given her good memories, and when they had been on their stakeout, she had felt like the looks Regina gave her could've melted ice.  
  
Still, she assumed that was the way good friends looked at each other. That had been her experience with another friend of hers from her teenage years that reminded her of Regina.  Why would this situation be any different?  
  
"Or not…" Neal laughed as he reached out to her and helped her back up. "There has to be something between you two, though."  
  
She brushed off some dirt from her jeans and glowered at Neal.  
  
"Come on, Emma. Aren't we friends now? Tell me."  
  
"Yeah," she muttered, but still refused to smile back as she started walking again. "I guess we are."  
  
"So, what's the deal? I've seen you in love before, and this doesn't look much different, even though you hide it better now. Seriously, Hook and I must've looked like idiots in Neverland, pining after you all the while you were pining after someone else. Neither of us ever stood a chance," he chuckled.  
  
_Pining?_ Neal was taking it too far. "Hey! I don't pine. And Regina certainly doesn't, either. She's all about co-parenting and being friends and stuff, and that's totally cool."  
  
Neal laughed at that. "That really doesn't sound like you're happy with the situation _. That's totally cool._ So co-parenting and being friends is not all there is, right?"  
  
She was quickly growing irritated of Neal's attitude. "Okay, Neal, let's just quit this. There's a weird mark on your hand, and we need to find your dad, so there's more important stuff to do."  
  
Neal raised his hands in surrender, but his face was still too amused for her liking. "Okay, okay, as you wish."  
  
"Thank you," she replied.  
  
"You better invite me to the wedding, though," he added with a chuckle and a wink.  
  
"Hey! Neal, come on," she rolled her eyes. If she was honest with herself, it wasn’t that the thought of marrying Regina was unwelcome. It was probably too welcome. She planned on taking Henry back to the safety of New York and she didn’t need her mind to run rampant with reasons to stay.  
  
Her phone interrupted their conversation, and Belle informed her of what she had found. After that, there wasn't anything to laugh about for a long while.


	3. queens of assumptions

The second time someone mistook her and Emma for a couple was as unexpected as the first, if not more. It happened on a dark cold night in the company of Ursula, Cruella, and a recently revived Maleficent.

After putting her plan to go undercover into action, Regina was in a situation where she had to prove herself. She could tell she wasn't doing too well after an unfortunate incident with a train (why had she made it possible for trains to go through the outskirts of Storybrooke, anyway?), and she had suggested they seek some real fun.

According to her company, real fun in her small town was stealing a police car and making it completely unusable while drinking unhealthy amounts of alcohol. The latter she had done before, but taking the car had been completely unnecessary. Despite that, she was now watching Maleficent throw fireballs at the vehicle, and every once in a while she joined in. She couldn't blow her cover, and if this was the woman's idea of a good time and her way of proving she was still "a bad girl" as Maleficent had put it, then she'd gladly do it as long as she didn't actually have to hurt anybody.

She had just thrown another fireball towards the car when Cruella seemed to find interest in her again. The fur-wearing woman was leaning on her car smoking a cigarette. She had been concentrated on Ursula and her tentacles in the river instead of the maiming of the police car until now.

"So, Regina, what's the deal with the Savior?" Cruella asked in her bored condescending tone as she breathed out some smoke.

Regina scrunched her brow. She didn't know why Cruella had sudden interest in what she thought of Emma. "What's the deal? What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, Mal here told us that she suspected you had replaced her with a brand new blonde model," she said as she waved her arm towards Maleficent. "Which, I think, is totally unacceptable. Why shag the Savior when you can have this dragon right here? You really must've gone soft."

"What? There's nothing going on between Emma and me!" Regina barked at Cruella. Why had Maleficent said something like that?

Regina turned to face the dragon, waiting for a clarification because she couldn't believe what she had just heard. The part about their past didn't surprise her, but the comment about Emma? That was completely unexpected.

Mal shrugged. "I might've mentioned it. It seems that way from what I've heard. The part about you and the Savior being an item, not the one where we ought to get back together. Cruella is just obsessed with the idea."

"She's got a point, though. I got that vibe too when we first crossed the town line," Ursula added from near the water with a knowing look in her eyes. "The two power couples of Storybrooke welcoming us to their little town. Snow White and her Prince… And the Savior and good old Evil Queen here."

Was that the impression she gave to them when she was standing next to Emma and her parents? She couldn't tell if the trio was joking or if they wanted to make sure she wasn't associated with the heroes of the town in such a way. Regina was struck by how casually they had brought her affiliation with Emma, which was in reality rather nonexistent, into the conversation and then just dropped it.

"Darling," Cruella said to Ursula and moved towards the other woman. "Don't call her good. This evening is supposed to show us if she's still a bad girl, and I don't want you giving her any ideas… Standing next to those heroes," she spat and shuddered. Then she turned back to her. "Are you still on our team, Regina?"

She put on her best malevolent poker face. "Of course. And nothing to worry about with the Savior. We are not in any way an item. She gave birth to my son, so we sometimes meet because of that, but I can assure you there are no other relations that take place." Not that she didn't wish there were, but these three didn't have to know that.

"Excellent. She's too good for your own good. We don't want you to have any undesired influences," Cruella laughed and lit another cigarette upon finishing her first.

"Doesn't look like there's nothing going on, though," Ursula muttered and took a sip of her drink.

"Do you question my honesty?" Regina asked as she put on one of her menacing faces and lit a fireball. She really didn't have time for pointless accusations when she was trying to do this ridiculous job that was annoying enough already. This was keeping her away from Henry and finding her happy ending.

"Not necessarily…" Ursula answered. She didn't seem intimidated enough for Regina's liking.

"Regina, the car isn't burnt enough, so throw your fireball that way," Maleficent said calmly with a hint of amusement in her voice.

Regina rolled her eyes and threw the fireball towards the car without even looking. The assumptions of these three women were ridiculous and she wouldn't give them more attention than necessary. That would just show that she thought about Emma more than was wise, and there was no need to give them any hints of that. Making Emma their next goal after the car was the last thing she wanted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for leaving kudos and commenting!! i'm glad people have enjoyed my sqw stuff :)


	4. gal pals

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Sorry this took ages!
> 
> I took some liberties with Lily, sorry (not really sorry).
> 
> Thanks to my beta, Ari, again x

The second person who confronted Emma about her not-so-platonic feelings towards Regina was Lily after her old friend had been in Storybrooke for a week.

It all started with her having lunch with Regina and Henry at Granny's like any other day. They were discussing Operation Mongoose when she saw Lily sit down opposite Maleficent at a table near theirs. After Henry and Regina left and she was ready to go continue her Sheriff patrol, she heard the door of the diner open and Lily call out her name.

"Lily, hi," she replied after turning around. "What's up?"

"I'm… pretty good. She… Maleficent is not the scary dragon bitch I thought," Lily started uncertainly. "She's... this real person and actually really nice. She's teaching me and everything. I've been thinking about staying here a little while longer."

Emma smiled. That's how it had started for her too. She had said she would stay in Strorybrooke for a week, but there she was, living with her family and talking about happy endings with Regina.

"That's great. Really great, Lily. Let me know if you want to have lunch or whatever sometime. If you want to be… friends again." She was uncertain what she should say, but she really wanted Lily to have happiness in her life too, and she really hoped they could be friends despite everything that had happened.

"Yeah, we could do that. Speaking of friends, I need to ask you something," Lily started casually enough. Her face had some of its old excitement back; she resembled the girl Emma knew in her youth.

"Okay, sure. What?"

"What's happening between you and Regina?" she asked as her lips pulled into a mischievous smirk. "The first time I saw you guys she was giving you this motivational speech about not corrupting yourself like you were the most important person in her life? And you guys also share a kid? If I didn't know any better, I'd say Henry has two moms who are happily together. Please tell me you're some secretly dating team moms magic couple." She grinned after her last sentence.

Emma's mouth hung open at that. Okay, so she might have thought that herself once or twice – she didn't deny that anymore – but how could Lily come to this conclusion in such a short time? No one other than Neal had ever implied anything like that before.

"Tell me you've done it, at least," Lily added cheerfully as she sat down on one of the chairs outside Granny's.

"I… No, Lily, we haven't," Emma shook her head and tried to keep her expression neutral so she wouldn't reveal how she really felt about Regina. For a short moment she felt shocked that Lily kept going on about the subject like that, but then she remembered keeping her mouth shut had never been Lily's strong suit. The woman was starting to resemble her carefree younger self more and more each passing minute.

"You're telling me that you're just besties with that woman?" Lily laughed and raised her eyebrows. "Nothing else? Besties who share a kid. Gal pals for life…"

"Okay, Lily, just stop it," Emma waved her hand dismissively and as nonchalantly as she could. She tried to manage a laugh, but it sounded forced even to her own ears.

The corners of Lily's mouth turned upwards into a knowing smirk once again, and Emma hated herself for having been so transparent. "So I am not completely wrong here. So, what's the issue? Why are you still with that pirate when you could have Regina?"

Emma sighed. It wasn't like she didn't want to be with Regina. It had started off as a playful thought about the insufferable mayor of the town, but it had somehow turned into a growing fascination over a woman who would never return her feelings. Regina was all about Robin Hood and his bow and goddamn forest smell. Emma had once contemplated going to live in the forest for a week and learn how to use a bow and arrow to see if that would help, but she had decided against it. There were things that Regina desired that she just couldn't give.

"I… Regina doesn't see me that way," she finally admitted her defeat and responded truthfully, realizing Lily could see how she felt about Regina anyway. "She thinks of me as a friend and Henry's birth mother. She doesn't even like girls."

"Whoa, Emma let me stop you right there." Lily voice got higher and she raised her hands. "That is the biggest load of crap I've heard from you. Sorry. Can't you see how she looks at you? How you both look at each other? You guys should come with a PDA warning. God, I can't imagine how bad it'd be if you actually were a couple; the heart eyes that you throw all over the place are enough as is."

Emma shook her head and spoke her mind again. "I think you're over-analyzing this. She loves Robin. Can't you see that?"

"That may be the case, although I'd say it's debatable, but that doesn't mean she wouldn't love you too." Lily smiled at her. "And about the Regina doesn't like girls thing? I'm in possession of some classified information, but this situation clearly requires it." Lily took a deep breath and looked like she was about to deliver the best news of the year. "Regina? Not only into dudes. My mom and her in the Enchanted Forest? Well, let's just say that I could've called Regina my step-mother if I had hatched where I was originally supposed to." Lily winked and shrugged.

Maleficent? Was Lily just attempting to mess with her head? Regina didn't like girls. Regina liked forest men and stable boys, but not girls. Or not her, at least. Otherwise something would've happened already.

"You're joking," she concluded and let out an exasperated sigh.

"Emma, you idiot!" Lily put her face in her hands and groaned.

"Hey!" she shouted. Only Regina was allowed to call her an idiot.

"Knock knock," Lily started with a smile and dropped her hands to her lap.

"Knock knock jokes? Seriously?" She couldn't believe she was having this conversation.

"Emma. You're supposed to say 'Who's there?'" Lily explained as if she were talking to a young child.

 _Fine_. "Who's there?"

"Regina, who's gonna pull you out of your _I love Regina_ closet," Lily replied and laughed. Emma didn't. "Come on, Emma."

"Lily, I told you. Regina doesn't see me that way."

"Can't you see anything?" Lily's tone was starting to get frustrated again. "Your awe of Regina is completely clouding your judgment over here. Even my mom thought there was something going on between Regina and you. Something even she didn't want to meddle with. So what are you waiting for?"

A miracle. That was what she was waiting for. Actually, she was done waiting and hoping for anything. Being co-parenting friends was more than she had ever expected, and there was no reason to believe something as implausible as Regina liking her back romantically.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise the last two chapters will have (a lot of) Emma and Regina interacting with each other! Sorry it's taken so long!


	5. in which the dark one blushes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A million thanks to my beta, Ari, again! (She made a new SQ sideblog, swanedmills, so you should totally check that out because she's awesome. Or her main blog, amysntiagos. 10/10 would recommend.)
> 
> & Thanks to Mari for answering my question about NYC streets.

No one had mistaken Emma and Regina for a couple in a long time. Emma wouldn't have minded the idea any more than before, but now that she was the Dark One – had been for a while – she had come to the conclusion that no one would be suspecting anything like that again. She had stopped dreaming about being with Regina because becoming the Dark One had many effects, one of them being that no one saw her as they did before. No one could love her. Not in the way they had loved her as the Savior, at least.

That no one might not have included Henry, or even Regina, but she managed to convince herself that her point still stood.

That was why she was very surprised by the events of her trip to New York, or more specifically, the trip she took there with Henry and Regina. After ongoing insistence that a place without magic would be a good break from everything and would help her deal with herself and the darkness inside her, she had agreed to go on a week-long vacation with them. She wasn't sure how they had even managed to convince her that being without her powers was a good idea, but somehow the three of them were now walking down the Fifth Avenue, completely without magic like everyone around them.

"Emma! Henry!"

She turned towards the voice. What were the chances that she would actually run into someone she knew in a city this big?

She soon recognized the person as Jessica, her friend from the gym during the year she and Henry had lived in New York. She was holding the hand of her five-year-old daughter, Ariana, and waving for them to stop.

Seeing people she knew from her non-fairytale life felt surreal, more so now that she was the Dark One. She managed to smile back at Jessica as the other woman walked towards them through the crowd. Jessica was smiling at her in her usual bubbly carefree manner as she approached them with little Ariana.

"Emma, it's been ages," Jessica said and gave her a one-armed hug, which Emma returned with as much enthusiasm as she could muster. She felt torn between two lives and realities. "How are you?"

"Good, I'm good," she answered and tried to act normal. How had she behaved when she had lived in New York? It had been such a long time ago, before she decided to live with darkness so Regina wouldn't have to. "Just visiting for a week and then heading back home."

"Maine, right? That's crazy," Jessica said and turned to Henry. "Wow, you've grown up. You're almost as tall as your Mom and taller than me and…" Jessica waved at Regina with an expectant look on her face.

"This is Regina, also my Mom," Henry said and laughed.

"Oh," Jessica seemed to think for a while and then smiled and shook Regina's hand. "I'm Jessica. Very nice to meet you."

"Likewise," Regina said with a polite smile.

"So, wow, Emma, you've done well for yourself! I didn't think you'd move on so fast after Walsh, but this is great. You make such a cute family."

"Mommy, mommy. Did Emma get married?" Ariana pulled Jessica's sleeve with wide eyes.

"That's a good question! Did you?" Jessica asked with a wide smile. Her gaze fell on their hands. "No rings, so I guess not."

"Um," Emma was speechless and judging by the silence, so was Regina. She didn't even dare look at the dark-haired woman. Emma felt petrified, the question hitting close to home because of her one-sided feelings. The possibility of Regina knowing how she felt made her nervous.

"No, she didn't, but maybe any day now," she heard Henry's carefree voice say. "You never know with these two." Emma turned to look at Henry who was putting his arms around their shoulders and grinning widely. When did he get so tall anyway?

Henry's height should have been the last thing on her mind, though, because he had just said she and Regina could _get married any day now_. As far as she knew, that would require some sort of romantic relationship first, or at least that would be desirable. What was Henry on about? She should fix any misconceptions before it was too late and –

"Well, that's wonderful. I wish you both the very best and congratulations in advance. We've gotta go now, we'll be late otherwise. Let me know if you stick around longer so I can have you over for dinner!"

She was left staring at Jessica's back until the reality of the situation hit her when she heard Regina's furious voice say, "Henry Daniel Mills! What was that?"

Judging by Regina's tone, Emma figured their son had really stepped over a line. Who honestly said his moms were probably getting married soon when they weren't even together in the first place?

"Well, you never know, right?" He put his arms down and stepped away to face them both, his stance so carefree compared to Emma's tense posture. He let out a little laugh. "Come on, moms."

"Come on what?" left Emma's mouth.

"Exactly," Regina's harsh voice said. "There is nothing going on between Emma and I. She doesn't even like women."

Emma kept nodding until Regina came to the "doesn't like women" part. Since when didn't she like women? That was definitely not the issue here.

Henry laughed until he realized no one was laughing with him. "Wait, you're serious? She's bi, Mom. Everyone knows that by now. How don't you… Friends are supposed to talk about this stuff…" Henry groaned in exasperation and brought his hands to his face. "I can't believe this."

Regina didn't know? Emma was pretty sure everyone knew about her one-sided affections for Henry's other mother. Lily had been the last one who had confronted her about it, during simpler times before she had become the Dark One. Neal had been able to tell years ago. Even when she had been with Hook, all she had talked about was Regina. She hadn't noticed it herself, but one evening, after too much rum, Hook had gotten a weird attack of jealousy and gone on and on about how everything was always about Regina. She had defended herself by using terms such as "best friend" and "Henry's mother."

Wait, had Regina just said "she?" _She doesn't like women_. That said nothing about Regina, though. Regina could've said "We don't like women" or "Neither of us likes women" but Regina had specified Emma didn't.

She felt her mouth open as realization hit her, but no words came out.

"Mom, Emma likes women. I'm pretty sure she likes you," Henry said in an amused tone to a completely flabbergasted Regina and then turned to her. "Emma, pretty sure Mom likes you too. I'm gonna go for a… walk. You guys talk. I'll call you in a couple of hours. See you!"

He managed to casually wave his hand and disappear into the crowd of people surrounding them. Emma had no choice but to turn and face Regina. She knew she was incredibly flustered, and she just wanted to disappear.

It was true that she was out of her comfort zone, but so was Regina. When she finally looked at her, the brunette was like a deer in the headlights, her determined cool expression completely lost.

When Regina finally opened her mouth, she didn't comment on what they had just found out. "Does Henry know where he's going? Is it safe for him?"

"Yeah, um," Emma started. Her mouth was dry and she was wondering how Regina could be so casual again. "Yeah, he knows how to get around. He's lived here." The kid was almost sixteen now, so he could surely manage to walk around despite the city being so big. He had definitely been in worse places.

There was an awkward silence during which they both avoided looking at each other. Emma's heartbeat increased even more and her palms were getting sweaty, not to mention her face was probably beet-red by now.

"You wanna get a drink?" Regina finally asked, breaking the silence.

"It's like…" she pulled her phone from her pocket and took a look at the time on the screen. "Eleven AM."

"What kind of drinking buddy are you?" Regina asked and shook her head. The tension was finally starting to break, and a smile crept onto Regina's lips. Emma wanted to kiss Regina so badly, and it shocked her to realize that just maybe she could. After all these years, maybe Regina wanted to kiss her back too.

"Emma?"

She realized that she hadn't said anything and was grinning like an idiot. She felt herself blush again.

"Yeah, let's get a drink," she said in a hoarse voice despite trying to sound confident. It didn't matter, though, because Regina smiled at her, they were in New York, and she hadn't felt this light in ages.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can find out more about their trip to New York if you read my fic "Drinking Buddies and Bedfellows." The sixth chapter of this fic will take place after that one.


	6. charming interruptus

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first half of this chapter is rated M. (Or E. I don't really know.) Skip that if that's not your thing. My finger slipped and things got smutty.
> 
> A million thanks to Ari again!

The first time someone correctly assumed they were a couple was a situation that was far more awkward than all their conversations about their feelings combined. They were back in Storybrooke from their trip to New York and currently in no position to talk about their potential relationship. They had somehow – incredibly inappropriately, Regina could've added – ended up bodies flush against each other on the couch of Snow's apartment when no one else was there.

"Oh my God, Regina. Please don't stop," Emma moaned as her hips bucked.

A sly smile made its way to Regina's lips. She wouldn't have stopped for anything. Maybe some other day when she would feel like teasing Emma a bit, but right now she was thrusting three fingers inside the writhing woman and didn't want anything more than to bring her to an orgasm.

"Oh, I wasn't planning to," she assured and pressed a kiss on Emma's lips as she continued her ministrations. Emma responded to her kiss a bit too half-heartedly for her liking, but she supposed the blonde's thoughts were concentrated on something else.

"Great," Emma mumbled into the kiss, her breath hitching and her hips bucking to meet Regina's thrusts.

She looked at the woman underneath her and thought this must have been one of the very best and most unexpected things to ever happen to her. How in the world was she lucky enough to have Emma Swan reciprocate her feelings?

It had taken them a while – several years, if you wanted to get technical – but the push Henry had given them on their trip to New York had been exactly what they needed. Having a few drinks and opening up about their emotions combined with there being only one bed in their shared hotel room had led to… something similar to the situation they were in now.

The good news was that their first kiss in Storybrooke after returning from New York had somehow lifted the Dark One's curse from Emma. She wasn't the Dark One anymore, and neither was anyone else.

"Regina! You said you wouldn't stop," Emma whined, and Regina realized she had zoned out, her fingers still inside Emma but hardly moving.

"Sorry, I just thought of something," she said as she started to move her hand again, her fingers making squishy sounds as she did so.

"Yeah?" Emma said uncertainly.

Regina thought it best not to worry Emma and answered honestly since there had already been enough misunderstandings because of them not talking. "Yeah, I thought how lucky I am to be here with you. It sure took us a while, though."

Emma let out a shaky laugh. "I should've just… invited you and your apples into my room the first morning I was here – oh, right there, oh, God."

Regina had sat up so she could reach deeper, which seemed to be a pleasant change of position for Emma. She brought her thumb to Emma's clit too, which judging by the sounds she got in response was an even more welcome change, and started drawing circles on it as she continued thrusting with her other fingers.

"Just Regina is fine," she couldn't help replying. "Even though I did create this town."

She was expecting Emma to make a sarcastic remark or to roll her eyes, but the blonde just let out another hoarse laugh and moved her hips. Since Emma's eyes were shut, Regina thought to surprise her with something she knew Emma liked. She lowered her body as much as she could while still keeping the position of her fingers the same and brought her face close to the apex of Emma's thighs, finally replacing her thumb with her tongue.

Emma's response was instant. Her hips rose from the couch more frantically than before and a guttural moan escaped her mouth. Had Regina's mouth not been busy doing something else, she would've grinned. She kept flicking Emma's clit and moving her fingers as one of Emma's hands flew to her hair and another one clutched the cheap material of the couch. She should probably magic it clean after they were done.

She could feel Emma's inner walls starting to clench around her fingers, and after some more flicks and thrusts, the blonde stiffened and came. Regina broke the contact with Emma's clit and raised her head to see Emma's flustered face, but she kept her fingers working a while longer, drawing out the orgasm.

Emma looked gorgeous. Regina couldn't keep herself from kissing her any longer, so she climbed up to look into the green eyes in front of her and pressed a soft sweet kiss on Emma's lips.

"Hey," Emma said, as they broke apart.

"Hey," she responded and laughed. Seeing Emma smile at her like nothing else mattered made her heart race. She could've stayed like this forever.

"Guess what I wanna do now?" Emma asked, a playful smirk reaching her eyes.

She had some sort of idea of how this conversation would turn out. "What?"

"Eat like a proper adult," she said in a mischievous tone and with a smirk only Emma could pull off.

She would've laughed at Emma's ridiculousness or made a sarcastic reply if she hadn't been so turned on then.

"Please go ahead then, dear," she replied with the last bit of even voice she could muster.

Emma started kissing her neck and she wanted to stay in that moment forever, but like all good things it came to an end. Just when Emma's hand slid down into the panties she was somehow still wearing, she heard someone in the hallway approach the loft.

"You left the door open? It wasn't even locked?" Regina hissed when she realized no one even had to unlock the door.

Emma seemed to be frozen on the spot. "I'm the... Sheriff, I can handle it if people break in!"

"But this is your parents' apartment!"

She rolled her eyes when Emma withdrew her hand and pulled a blanket off the floor to cover herself, panic evident on her face.

"Emma, Henry told us you were here… Oh, gods," Snow started casually until her gaze landed on them, Emma clutching the blanket and Regina wearing only her underwear.

As much as some small part of Regina enjoyed the shock on Snow and David's faces, she remembered that this situation was terrible for Emma, so she magicked them both a new set of clothes. Emma's magic had gone a bit haywire after she had lost her powers as the Dark One and had started using her old magic again. Who knew what Emma trying to conjure herself new clothes in this state would've actually done.

"You couldn't have done that a bit earlier or just poofed us away instead?" Emma hissed as she took a look at their clothing and dropped the blanket.

"Oh," left her mouth. She really should have. She must have been thinking about something else, like Emma's hand in her pants.

"Oh? That's what you're gonna say to me? I swear to God, Regina…"

Emma didn't get to finish her sentence, because that was when David spoke. "Emma?"

"Everything's fine, David," Regina said when Emma still couldn't look at her parents. "Your daughter is great and she's not even the Dark One anymore. We should celebrate, really."

"I knew it! I knew it when I saw her after their trip to New York!" Snow exclaimed, unable to keep her mouth shut. "True Love's kiss, wasn't it? Oh, David, aren't you happy?"

"She's not the Dark One anymore?" David asked incredulously.

"Of course she's not. Please David, can't you see True Love when it's right in front of you?" Snow was overjoyed, which made Regina raise her brow. She wasn't sure what she had been expecting, but after everything that had happened between her and Snow, it wasn't this. Not that she was complaining. It made life much easier for everyone, Emma above anyone else. "I know I can. I've been waiting for this… Well, not this. This was too much, and I hope I never have to see it again. But you two being a couple. That I've known for a long time! Oh, Emma, why didn't you tell us?"

"Well, we weren't a couple until…" Emma stopped as she realized her slip. Her expression was uncertain. "Or um, I don't know. Are we? Regina?"

After all the times people had assumed she and Emma were a couple, Regina was glad she could answer differently this time. She cleared her throat as she thought of a reply that would benefit Emma and their current situation the most.

"This is quite new for us as well, so that would explain Emma not telling you, but I'll let Emma answer the couple question," she said with her best politician voice. "I personally do like the idea." She turned to face Emma during her last sentence, trying to nonverbally convince her that she really did want to be with Emma if the blonde so wished.

She just wished they weren't having this conversation in front of Snow and David of all people.

"Really?" Emma said quietly, completely disregarding that her parents were standing in the same room.

"Yes," she responded and smiled, which caused Emma to smile back at her as she took her hand.

She was fairly certain Emma was about to kiss her, too, but then she seemed to remember the situation they were in. Emma turned to look at her parents. "Um, yea, mom, I guess we're a couple," she said and smiled a shy uncertain smile.

Regina smiled, too. So did Snow, but David still looked perpetually confused. That hardly mattered, though, because she was actually with Emma Swan, True Love's kisses and all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!! :) Feel free to leave a comment if you made it this far.
> 
> I don't have any new stories planned right now, but you can find me at queenssaviour on tumblr and queenssavlour (that's an L there) on twitter (come say hi)!


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